Complete Count Committees at the state, county, city, and/or tribal levels are intended to bring together community leaders to ensure a complete count of residents in the targeted area. For us, that area is the state of Washington; and Governor Inslee launches the statewide effort on October 8, 2018 when he attends the inaugural meeting of the Washington State Complete Count Committee. Chaired by former Governor and former U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, the committee combines the expertise and knowledge of a representative group of local community, business, philanthropic, and elected leaders to strategize about how to:

Educate Washington state residents about the census, its impact in terms of redistricting at all levels and its impact on government, business, and nonprofit budgeting and planning

Explain innovations (use of internet as primary self-response tool, new categories for ethnic identification, and potential question on citizenship) – and dispel myths

Engender trust in the process despite the potential citizenship question, the invasive nature of a census exercise and the cybersecurity concerns associated with online submissions

Encourage and ensure self-response and cooperation with census workers